Farm urges council to reverse planning decision
BBCThe owner of a family-run visitor farm has said she is "flabbergasted" by a council's decision to reject their plans for a covered, accessible playground.
Work at Whitehouse Farm near Morpeth, Northumberland, was carried out without planning permission and it has been told to remove the structure or face prosecution.
Heather Hogarty, who runs the farm, said building had gone ahead because they believed they had fulfilled planners' requirements and could have been hit with a £30,000 penalty if they did not keep to the timescale of the work.
Northumberland County Council said the structure was "inappropriate" in the green belt.
The farm has been in Hogarty's family for more than 50 years, and open to visitors since 1997.
The team first applied for planning permission to renovate the play area in 2024 because they wanted to put a cover over it.
This was to make it more accessible and safer for children with disabilities, they said.
Two issues were raised by planners at Northumberland County Council and the farm was told it needed consultation regarding public rights of way and from the county ecologist.
Both reports came back with no objections and the farm submitted a second application.
Hogarty admitted they were hasty in starting the building work in early 2025, but said the decision was made because they believed they had now fulfilled the requirements set out by planners.
"We were led to believe, possibly naively, that everything would be fine", she said.
She added the farm was facing a £30,000 penalty from the play company if it did not keep to the timescale of the building work.
However once the cover was built, the farm found out the plans had been rejected and was served with a stop notice from Northumberland County Council.
Currently the unfinished play area is fenced off, with tarpaulin covering the play equipment. It has been like this for a year.
"The developer was clearly advised planning permission was required but decided to carry out the development," a Northumberland County Council spokesperson said.
"When the developer appealed recently to the independent Planning Inspectorate, the inspector agreed with the council that the progressive building was inappropriate in the green belt."
'Really saddening'
An online petition urging the local authority to reconsider its rejection of the plans has more than 7,500 signatures.
Stephen Browne and his family are regulars to Whitehouse Farm with their 13-year-old son Milo, who uses a wheelchair.
"It's really saddening to see that something that's been designed and developed to include everyone is being held back," Browne said.
Megan Killington is mother to 10-year-old Sophia, who is also disabled.
She said her daughter "loves Whitehouse Farm".
"Every child deserves to play, my daughter deserves to be involved in outdoor play, and to have something so special be refused, is really, really sad," Killington said.
As the situation stands, the farm owners will have to take down the new playground structure by 18 May, or they could face prosecution.
Hogarty urged to council to reconsider its decision.
"I would just like them to look at it again because it will affect a lot of people," she added.